This introductory activity is familiar to many educators. The intent of the activity is to have students learn how to make a fingerprint and classify fingerprints based on the pattern on the print. The use of ink from a pad (though it can be messy and difficult to clean off hands) is the simplest method for making fingerprints. Students should be encouraged to make a clean print by evenly covering each finger with ink and then firmly rolling their fingers on a white piece of paper. Teachers may wish to consult other references for more sophisticated methods of collecting prints.
To simplify the classification of fingerprints there are four major categories to consider: loop, arch, whorl and accidental. Using these four categories students should be able to identify their fingerprints.
Part 1 of the
procedure has students taking their fingerprints and recording then on
their chart. The emphasis should be on a clear print for each finger.
Students will not be able to properly classify their fingerprints if the
prints are not taken properly. In Part 2, a scenario is given to the
students. They must compare the collected fingerprint to several
possible suspects. You will have to collect a series of fingerprints for
use in this part. Your colleagues would be a good source of prints.
With each activity there is an attempt to contextualize the scientific
skill or process the students have developed. This provides them with a
opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
You may decide
to assign the questions in this or any other activity or you may decide
to have a debriefing of the activity that includes a discussion on the
questions. If you decide to have the students keep a forensic database
or forensic log book, then you may want the students to write a
paragraph, that encompasses the questions, reflecting on what they did
today.
Go to Student Fingerprinting Page
Return to Teacher Lessons Introduction Page
Return to Forensic Science Introduction Page